Monday, November 16, 2009

Sunday Soup: Butternut Squash and Apple Soup with Cider Cream

I'm a day late, I know, but I was very busy yesterday being lazy. This week for me at work is insane and is usually the busiest for each holiday peak we have. So I tossed away my "to do" list and cocooned myself in my tiny house, trying to brace myself for the marathon week this will be.

And what better way to fortify yourself than with soup. There are so many things I really like about this soup. First, it is fast to make and tasty to eat. I'm assuming there is some healthiness going on as well. One way it is fast is to use pre-cut items like this butternut squash. Couldn't be handier, and is good to have leftovers for a quick and healthy side dish. I also took advantage of Trader Joe's prepackaged leeks. I appreciate buying just the part that I want to use. It doesn't seem as wasteful as buying a whole leek only to throw half of it away.

The other thing I'm loving about this soup and the last one is the use of an immersion blender. These little babies are among my top 5 tools in the kitchen. They are fun to use, easy to clean up. And I simply love blended soups.

I cut the recipe in half and each serving was very generous. You won't go hungry with this. And another plus - this recipe wasn't very expensive. I used many of the ingredients from the last soup, plus others I already had on hand.

Melt the butter in a large, heavy pan set over medium-high heat. When hot, add squash, leeks, carrots, and celery and saute', stirring frequently, until vegetables have softened slightly, 10 to 12 minutes. Add apples, thyme, and sage. Add stock and 1 cup of the cider. Bring mixture to a simmer. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer gently until vegetables and apples are tender, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Meanwhile, make the cider cream. Boil remaining 1/2 cup cider in a small, heavy saucepan until it reduces to 1/4 cup, for about 5 minutes. Cool, then place sour cream in a small bowl and whisk in reduced cider. (Cider cream can be prepared 1 day ahead; cover and refrigerate until needed.)

Puree the soup in batches in a food processor, blender, or food mill, and return soup to the pot. (Or use an immersion blender to puree the soup in the pot.) Taste soup and season with salt, as needed. (Soup can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cool, cover, and refrigerate. Reheat over medium heat.)

For the garnish, halve and core the reserved apple, then cut one half into 12 paper-thin slices. (Eat or save remaining half for another use.)

To serve, ladle soup into 6 shallow bowls and drizzle with cider cream. Garnish each serving with crumbled bacon and a couple of apple slices.